Senior Seminar CM4900.70 CRN: 30929 CM4900.F70 CRN: 30927 These are online sections only Spring 2014 Plymouth State University Communication and Media Studies Instructor: Annette M. Holba Office: Hyde 129A Phone: 535-2856 Office Hours: Tuesday/Thursday 9:30-10:30am Wednesday 1:00-3:00pm & by appointment Email: aholba@plymouth.edu Text Book: Communicating Ethically by William Neher and Paul Sandin (ISBN: 0-205-39363-2) Meeting Time and Place: Online Course Description Provides students with the opportunity to reflect upon their major coursework in order to connect theory and application in preparation for their entry into the workforce. Focuses on applying ethical frameworks, including deontology and utilitarianism, to a variety of case studies related to interpersonal, group and organizational communication and to personal and professional consumption and production of media. Course Objectives By the completion of this course students will be able to: 1. Identify and articulate the importance, relevance and pervasiveness of ethics in human communication in public, private, and mediated environments. 2. Describe and differentiate three to five communication and media ethics frameworks, including deontology and utilitarianism. 3. Apply three to five communication and media ethics frameworks to contemporary practices through a case study approach to real world situations in public, private, and mediated contexts. 4. Develop and verbally articulate a personal view on basic ethical issues, including untruthful communication, intentional ambiguity, the standard of rationality, ethical responsibilities for listeners, etc., in public, private, and mediated environments. 5. Actively engage and verbally participate in group discussion related to issues of current interest and controversy in communication and media ethics. 6. Identify, apply, and analyze appropriate communication and media ethics frameworks. 7. Engage in an active job search, using current best practices. 1 Communication and Media Studies Portfolio: The Communication and Media Studies department is beginning to institute a portfolio requirement for all students in the department. Below you will find a description of that requirement. Many of you (if you are in a catalog prior to AY2013-14) are not required to submit a portfolio as one of your graduation requirements but you still may be interested in creating a portfolio of your work to help you when you are searching for a job after graduation. The portfolio that you create might be a resource to show potential employers to demonstrate what you’ve learned in your four years at Plymouth State University. A portfolio is a collection of your student activities and achievements over a period of time such as the four years of college. The Communication and Media Studies portfolio displays your best work and allows you to demonstrate the skills, knowledge and dispositions that you have achieved during your time at Plymouth State University. In particular, as a student in the Communication and Media Studies department at Plymouth State University, you will use the portfolio to demonstrate that you have achieved each of the twelve departmental learning outcomes. Our courses provide opportunities for you to create artifacts that demonstrate your mastery of these learning outcomes. You will collect these artifacts into a portfolio that will also include your self-reflection explaining what each artifact demonstrates. You will begin your portfolio in CM2000 (Studies in Communication and Media) and finalize and evaluate it in CM4900 (Senior Seminar). Your portfolio should contain at least one artifact (assignment, paper, exam, project, etc.) per learning outcome along with a reflection statement in which you explain the ways in which this particular artifact demonstrates that you have met this particular learning outcome. That is, your portfolio will contain at least twelve artifacts (one for each learning outcome) and twelve reflection statements. Below is the departmental learning outcome that you will work on in this class, Senior Seminar. All assignments in this course are designed to meet this particular learning outcome. Departmental Learning Outcome Addressed by The Senior Seminar: 1. Recognize an ethical responsibility to other individuals, the community, the discipline, the profession and society as a whole based on various perspectives and associated standards of ethical communication in face-to-face and mediated environments. The Personal Code of Ethics is designed to get you to think deeply and clearly about who you are and what presuppositions guide your thoughts and behaviors. Once you identify these presuppositions, you are then led to think about the ideal you in relation to others and the environments in which you engage/exist. Finally, this assignment encourages you to recognize your ethical responsibility to others based upon an understanding of varying ethical decisionmaking paradigms. You will be shaping your understanding and preferences for ethical decisionmaking in the face of the other. The Communication and Media Ethics paper is designed to provoke you to apply your understanding of your ethical responsibility toward the other in a specific circumstance. You will 2 be asked to consider ethical positions of others and apply your understanding of the situation based upon various perspectives involved in the particular case. The Resumé Project is designed to apply your own ethical code of ethics as you consider how you present yourself in the marketplace and think about how you will work with other in the larger community of work and society. Attendance The penalty for missing class is that the student cannot receive participation points for that day. There will be no exceptions to that rule. Missing class on the day that an assignment is due does not excuse you from the assignment. If you do not post the assignment on Moodle BEFORE the beginning of the class period, you will receive the appropriate late penalties. See above for the rules that apply to missing an exam. Missing a substantial number of classes, whether excused or not, may result in automatic failure of the course since you will be missing the most important part of any seminar—the discussion! ADA Statement Plymouth State University is committed to providing students with documented disabilities equal access to all university programs and facilities. If you think you have a disability requiring accommodations, you should immediately contact the PASS Office in Lamson Library (5352270) to determine whether you are eligible for such accommodations. Academic accommodations will only be considered for students who have registered with the PASS Office. If you have a Letter of Accommodation for this course from the PASS Office, please provide the instructor with that information privately so that you and the instructor can review those accommodations. Academic Integrity Please read the following statement of departmental policy very carefully: The work you submit in this course must be your own. Whenever possible, it is preferred that students paraphrase/explain key concepts in their own words and cite the original source material appropriately. However, if you include four or more consecutive words directly from any source, be certain to surround them with quotation marks, and to properly cite the source and page number. Plagiarism, however unintentionally it may occur, is a serious violation of academic integrity. A student who is found to have plagiarized on any assignment should expect to receive a failing grade for the entire course. There are no exceptions to this policy. From the Plymouth State University Academic Catalog: "Violation of academic integrity includes any act which portrays a member of the academic community as having acquired knowledge through legitimate study or research which, in fact, has been stolen. Violation of academic integrity includes also any act which gains one member of the academic community an unfair advantage over another. This includes any act hindering the academic accomplishment of another." I will pursue violations of academic integrity to the fullest extent possible. Any student who has questions about what constitutes such 3 violations is encouraged to consult the Academic Catalog and/or discuss the issue with me. **These two sections (two different CRNs) of the Senior Seminar are set up exactly the same as the in class sections of this course except for the discussion forum set-up which is adapted to accommodate and mirror a classroom discussion. I will send you weekly video messages and I am happy to “meet” with anyone individually via skype if you have questions. Assignments and Evaluation Participation Responses (15pts per week for 10 weeks) 150pts o This course will be run as an online seminar which means that it will focus on discussion. The success of the course requires the full attention and participation of everyone in the course so be sure to post weekly (both the sets of questions below AND your response to those questions in a separate window as indicated in Moodle for Participation Responses. So to be clear, you will post your 5 sets of questions in the designated area in Moodle which are separate from your Participation Responses. See Rubric in Moodle. o See the rubric about participation on Moodle 5 sets of questions about reading 10pts each 50pts o You will develop 3 questions about the reading before class. These questions will be posted on Moodle and you will bring them to class, ready to raise them at the appropriate time during the discussion. o These questions may be things about the reading that you do not understand. Alternatively, they may raise issues that you find to be particularly important in understanding the reading. o Note that there are 6 opportunities to post questions about the reading but the lowest grade on these questions will be dropped o Your questions must be posted on Moodle by the due date in Moodle. No late questions will be accepted. Midterm exam 100pts o The midterm exam will cover chapters 1-5 of Communicating Ethically. o A make-up exams will be provided ONLY under the following conditions: You notify me BEFORE the exam that you must miss the exam; AND You provide documentation indicating that missing the exam was unavoidable; AND You take the make-up exam as soon as is reasonably possible. Communication and Media Ethics paper 100pts o The details of this paper will be handed out in class. o Late papers will be penalized at a rate of 10% per day (including non-class days). Your Résumé and the Job Search 75 pts o There are three parts to this assignment (each part is worth 25 points, total for this assignment is 75 points) 4 Personal skills assessment due Tuesday April 1 Résumé/cover letter draft due Thursday April 3 Final résumé/cover letter due Tuesday April 29 The résumé and cover letter needs to be targeted to a particular company you think you want to work for (for real or hypothetically). You will need to do some homework on the company and assessment their business in general and their particular needs in order to write a targeted cover letter and appropriate résumé. Personal code of ethics 250pts o The development of a personal code of ethics will be a main focus of the semester. o The development of this code will be broken into steps, each of which will be worth a portion of the total 250 points. o Missing the deadline for any of the steps in the development of the personal code of ethics will result in a 10% per day penalty (including non-class days). o The details of the assignment will be handed out in class and posted in moodle. Practice final exam 25pts o The practice final exam will allow you to practice the skills required for the final exam. Final exam 100pts o The final exam will allow you to demonstrate that you understand how to apply your personal code of ethics to actual communicative situations. o The exam will be posted online during final exam week. The deadline will be indicated in the course schedule below. o A make-up exam will be provided ONLY under the following conditions: You notify me BEFORE the exam that you must miss the exam; AND You provide documentation indicating that missing the exam was unavoidable; AND You take the make-up exam as soon as is reasonably possible. Grade Scale Grades will be assigned according to the following scale: 800-850 - A 765-799 - A731-764 - B+ 715-730 - B 680-714 - B665-679 - C+ 625-664 - C 595-624 - C570-594 - D+ 540-569 - D 510-539 - Dbelow 510 - F 5 Tentative Schedule (Reading assignments are in Communicating Ethically unless otherwise indicated) This schedule is subject to change due to weather/school closings (loss of power) and or the need to cover material longer than indicated in syllabus. Week Week 1 1/27-1/31 Week 2 2/4-2/7 Week 3 2/10-2/14 Week 4 2/17-2/21 Week 5 2/24-2/28 Topic for the Week Introduction to the Senior Seminar Video -Assignments -Discussion of Chapter 1 Assignment Due Read Chapter 1 Read syllabus Read Assignment Descriptions Post Introductory Comments and Respond to two others for total of 15pts (9pts for your response and 3 pts each for responding to two other students) for #1 Participation Response by Saturday, February 1, 5:00pm. Chapter 2: Character in Ethics Post 3 questions in the Discussion -read chapter 2 Questions Forum online about the -watch my video monologue on readings by Wednesday, February 5, chapter 2 5:00pm Do #2 Participation Response (responding to two others questions in the Participation Response Discussion Forum) by Saturday, February 8, 5:00pm Chapter 3: Duties in Ethics Post 3 questions in the Discussion -read chapter 3 Questions Forum online about the -watch my video monologue on readings by Wednesday, February 12, chapter 3 5:00pm Do #3 Participation Response (responding to two others questions in the Participation Response Discussion Forum) by Saturday, February 15, 5:00pm Chapter 4: Consequences in Ethics Post 3 questions in the Discussion -read chapter 4 Questions Forum online about the -watch my video monologue on readings by Wednesday, February 19, chapter 4 5:00pm Do #4 Participation Response (responding to two others questions in the Participation Response Discussion Forum) by Saturday, February 22, 5:00pm -See my video monologue synthesizing Post 3 questions in the Discussion Character (Virtue Ethics), Duty Ethics Questions Forum online about the (Deontological Ethics), and readings by Wednesday, February 25, Consequentialism(s) (Consequentialist 5:00pm about any of my video Ethics) monologues -See my video monologue on Part 1 of Do #5 Participation Response PCoE and Freewriting – Part 1 (responding to two others questions in the Participation Response Discussion Forum) by Saturday, March 1, 5:00pm 6 Week 6 3/3-3-7 Chapter 5: Relationships and Ethics -read chapter 5 -watch my video monologue on chapter 5 Week 7 3/10-3/14 Week 8 3/24-3/28 Week 9 3/31-4/4 Work on your PCoE-Part 1 Due: PCoE – part 1 March 12, 5pm Study for Midterm Midterm Exam Due Saturday, March 15, 5:00pm Post 3 questions in the Discussion Questions Forum online about the readings by Wednesday, March 4, 5:00pm Do #6 Participation Response (responding to two others questions in the Participation Response Discussion Forum) by Saturday, March 7, 5:00pm First draft of personal code of ethics part 1 is due March 12, 5pm Midterm exam is due Saturday March 15, 5pm SPRING BREAK NO CLASSES -read moodle articles in Topic 3 block Post 3 questions in the Discussion (Dialogic Learning Theory Article and Questions Forum online about the Arnett’s biopolitical essay) readings by Wednesday, March 26, -watch my video monologue on the 5:00pm article readings Do #7 Participation Response -watch my video monologue on your (responding to two others questions in personal skills inventory. the Participation Response Discussion Forum) by Saturday, March 29, 5:00pm -watch my video monologue on resumes, interviewing, your job search, a personal skills inventory, and how to market yourself ethically. -investigate links in moodle for your personal skills inventory and resume preparation 7 Get ready for your Resume! Develop a personal skills inventory for next class. Do #8 Participation Response (responding to two others questions in the Participation Response Discussion Forum) by Saturday, March 5, 5:00pm. Personal Skills Inventory is DUE Saturday, April 5, 5pm. Resume Draft is Due Monday, April 7, 5:00pm Week 10 4/7-4/11 Week 11 4/14-4/18 Week 12 4/21-4/25 Week 13 4/28-5/2 Week13 5/5-5/9 Chapter 6: Contemporary Challenges to Ethics -read chapter 6 -watch my video monologue on chapter 6 Personal Code of Ethics Revisited Work on your personal code of ethics part 2 Do #9 Participation Response (responding to two others questions in the Participation Response Discussion Forum) by Saturday, April 12, 5:00pm Paper on biopolitical ethics is due Sunday, April 13, 5:00pm Work on PCoE part 2 – it is due Wednesday, April 16, 5:00pm. Do #10 Participation Response (commenting on this portion of the PCoE and responding to two others in the Participation Response Discussion Forum) by Saturday, April 19, 5:00pm -Work on your Personal Code of Ethics part 3 -watch my video monologue on part three of the PCoE -ECA Convention (but will be available via email) Work on your Resume and Cover letter final document. Work on your final document of your PCoE. No discussion this week-work on your stuff! -watch my video monologue on using your Personal Code of Ethics and the point of a practice exam. Practice exam is due Friday, May 9, 5:00pm. Final version of resume is due Wednesday, April 30, 11:00pm Final draft of personal code of ethics is due (includes original AND revised part 1, original and revised part 2, AND part 3 ALSO – upload a clean version of your PCoE that is comprised of revised part 1, revised part 2, and part 3)due Sunday, May 4, 5:00pm. Final Exam is due by Friday, May 16, 2014 5:00pm CONGRATULATIONS!!!!!!!! You have completed your Senior Seminar!!!!!!!!! 8